Classroom Themes

1. For behavior, you could have them move different levels of detectives - for example from novice to super sleuth! Super sleuths would earn more money. Or they could get different numbers of stars on a badge to show how high up in rank they are.

2. I just bought a bulletin board border with a detective theme. I can let you know the company if you want.

3. Start the year with autobiographies and leave the names off and have them solve the mystery of who is being described. You could have them secretly bring in baby pictures to add a clue to the puzzle.

I too have a Hollywood Theme for my 6th grade class. It was my director's chair (given to me with my name by a student teacher of mine) that gave me the idea, along with the popularity of American Idol, I thought it would be right up their ally. My room is simple. I have 4 bulletin boards. 1. Filming on Location, highlighting social studies and ancient civilizations. The border is filmstrip made from our teacher center and a couple of cut outs of cameras. 2. This board has a marquee (made from lined butcher paper and shiny metallic border) which states "(Name) Elementary Presents and off to its side is small banner-like strips with the reading genres (mystery, biography, humorous, etc) and are put next to the Now Appearing sign. The board is for our response to literature writing. 3. I bought a bulletin...

Last year was my first year to do a theme. I decided to do patriotism since it was the first full school year after 9-11. I didn't go too overboard. My reading corner was "A Grand Ol' Reading Corner" with red, white, and blue "Five Star Books" written on them (my choice of Sequoyah nominated books, novels we read in class, and a few personal favs). I also had one of those red, white, and blue curtains that I glued up on my wall behind my reading corner with stars hanging from the ceiling. The kids really thought it was cool. I had a wire in my room that I strung some decorative wire with red white and blue stars on it. Then I hung red, white, and blue stars from that. We made patriotic wind socks on the first day. This was a 4th grade classroom. This year I will...

Themes are a great way to get you excited about a new year! Here are some themes that I have used, as well as others I've seen in my school!Last year I did a bumblebee theme that was really neat. There is so much out there with bees on it. From nametags to posters to borders! I used the phrase "Look who's buzzed into 2nd Grade" It got really neat. I've also used apples "2nd Grade: The apples of my eye!" as well as an ocean theme "Look who swam into 3rd Grade" Other people have used crayons and rainforest themes. My suggestion: Go to your local teacher store and shop around. You'll get lots of ideas there!

I have used many different themes over the years. This year I am using a "Reaching for the Stars" theme. I have made STAR folders (Students Taking Academic Responsibility) for parent communication and homework return. Center groups will each be a different color star. I will tape these to their desk and easily change as groups need to change. I am hanging up big stars from the ceiling with different character traits written on them. I have star charts for documenting growth in different areas. One bulletin board will be a big rocket with stars painted in the background. I haven't decided on a caption yet, maybe "Blasting off in Second Grade". I have stars to hang in the hall with each students name written on them. "We are Shining Star" is the caption. I am going to center the first day activities around a star theme.

Last year I taught 2nd. I did "Wild about 2nd grade!" Everything in the room was decorated with wild animals. The kid's names were hanging on the door on an animal (decorated notepad papers.) They entered the doorway decorated with tropical leaves haning down. I had tropical leaves and vines strung on lines across the room, and blow up tropical animals hanging from them. (I raffled off these items for good behavior later on.) I have the kids do a 1st wriing sample: I'm wild about 2nd grade because... and this is written on differnt animal print paper and hung in the hall for open house. On their desks the first day of school, is a goody bag filled with themed items, pencil, notepad, erasers, a small treat (Oriental trading catelog.) I extend this theme into science, Living things... math... graph our favorite wild animal, Use animal stamps...

I am doing a theme this year, but I haven't always done one. How much it encompasses is entirely up to you. I did a racing theme one year, and all it included was the welcome sign on our door, some racing tires filled with pillows in our class library, and a behavior system based on the different flags.
This year I had planned to do a camping theme. I was really excited a couple of weeks ago and had so many ideas that I thought maybe I was going a little overboard. Now I've changed it to an Alaska theme (since that's where we are). In 3rd grade SS we study Alaskan geography and history, and we tie it into science with weather and animals, so now I feel like I can incorporate my theme and make it curriculum-related, too. I plan to name my groups after...

Just this year my grade level co-workers and I began using year-long themes in our classrooms. We coordinate so we are all within a broader theme. For example, this year our grade level theme was "Oh, The Places You Will Go" (Dr. Seuss) We each took a different element of travel for our rooms. One was land, one air, one water, and the other was space. We even decorated our hallway and did projects throughout the year regarding travel around the world (we did group reports on various countries and presented to the other classes in our grade level.Next year our theme is habitats/animals. One class has rainforests, one has the outback/desert, one has safari, one has ocean, and our special ed teacher is going to do the tundra. It should be great. We are already planning!!

1. Busy Bees (The teacher supply store has a really cute bulletin board set with bees, a hive, etc.)The caption for your bull. board could say:

"Welcome Busy Bees" or "This will "Bee" a Great Year!

2. Dalmation Dogs Make a large dalmation dog with cute spots and a hat too. Make smaller versions to label with each students' name. Hang on bull. board. The caption could say:Look Who Got Spotted In First Grade!"

3. Bears You should be able to find a commercially mad bulletin board set with bears at a teacher's supply store. Label bears with each child's name. Caption ideas:"A Beary Good Group", "A Beary Good Class","We Can Bearly Wait To Begin!".

4. Cows Do similar steps as mentioned for other themes above. Captions:

Yes, the kids really think themes are cool - anything that jazzes up a room! I teach 5th, and I did mine in a jungle theme and they thought it was awesome! I had the vines hanging over the reading area - with leopard spotted body hug pillows to sit on (they begged to sit in the reading corner!!!). I had a "hut" over my bulletin board called "The Information Hut" that held all the calender info., newsletter, lunch menu, etc... It didn't take a ton of time to do - and the kids really enjoyed it.

There are lots of themes that you can purchase a ton of premade stuff at the teacher store like ocean or jungle. It would be easy and quick but sometimes can get pricey. If you are willing to spend the time you could make things. I did a sports theme for this year. I found some things at the teacher store like sports border and die cut packages of balls, but I made a lot of stuff to go with this theme too. I just looked through my mailbox magazines that I had. I found a baseball unit that had pigs with baseball bats. I used my overhead and traced one for my behavior area. I made a sign that said grand slam behavior. This theme was a little harder to do than my previous ones because I had to be creative. It is so much easier to...

Your class is your "school" of fish.
Your good work board could be titled--This work's a keeper!
Your jobs board could be titled--Tackle these jobs
Reading area--Reel in a Good Book
Lunch count--bait? Fish food?

You could use inexpensive items found at yard sales or possible things you have in your own garage to decorate your room. Tackle boxes for supplies. Hang some fishing poles and nets. If you want you could have a small tank of fish. There are many ready-made items for this theme as well. I hope this helps:)

In an effort to spread out the cost of preparing a new classroom, I have been buying things for my class since I started my post-bac program last year. We spend a lot of time in Florida, and I love the ocean, so I decided on an ocean theme for my class. I want to teach 4th or 5th grade, so I am not going overboard, but here are some things I am doing.

I bought some cool tropical fish fabric at Wal-Mart and I am making a balloon valance for the window, one for the door, and making a futon cover for my futon loveseat I was given. The fabric was CHEAP on a clearance table.

I have buckets of shells that we have collected on the beach, and I bought a plain cheapo wall clock. I adheared the shells all around the clock, so now I have a shell...

Im a first year teacher and I decided to do a racing theme. I am going to do "Racing into 5th grade" or "Licensed to Learn" on the door and print out their names on license plates (I found that idea on this site actually). I am having a "reading pit" and the classroom jobs are the "pit crew," and a whole lot more. I am really excited about it!

I was in the same boat last year. I taught a K-1 split. I did go with a theme. I think it kept the kids involved and interested. I did the "Home on the Range" farming theme. I made a bulliten board display of a farm yard out of material but it can easily be done with poster board. The bulliten board stayed up all year but things were added seasonally or monthly. Like they added turkey handprints at thanksgiving. Our class jobs were are farm titled. I was the farmer. The student of the week was the ranch hand, the person who kept the hallway tidy was the Boot Wrangler the person who took the attendance and hotlunch order was the Pony Express. You can get paper plate shaped like animals for them to do writing samples on. The possibilities are endless. The only real...

Last year I did a smilie face theme and the year before. It worked out great because you can find a lot of different things with smilie faces on it. THis year I have decided to do a dog theme. I just got a new puppy at the end of last year and I have an older dog. I love dogs and most of my students last year did to. I am making some of my things and it looks better than store bought. I did get the Big Dog School house bb set and paw prints and bones boarders. I was able to find a paw print stamp so I can make anything I need and put my touch to it. Like Anna said they like anything as long as its not babyish. Just make sure it is a theme you can live with. Have fun and if...

Maggie: I teach 6th, but started in 3rd. Tie your theme into your subject matter. Birds of a feather... using birds and birdhouses; sunflowers are great to begin the year. I kept them all year and made it a seasonal theme. My door said "I picked a little sunshine this year" and had all the student's names on the flowers. I found matching desk tags and Carson Dellosa had an abundance of material to tie in all year. I the fall I had a corn patch with sunflowers around and in December, snow and sunflowers (a cheery winter in my classroom! At my luau at the end of the year... you guessed it... sunflowers. The kids loved it. They could not wait to see what my sunflowers were going to become next.

Last year, I did a camera theme and titled it "A Picture-Perfect Year! I got the cutouts from a teacher supply store, and coordinating border. I put the kids' first day of school pictures on the door, and inside the room, I bought these paper frames that had room for the kids to write a goal for the year, and I displayed those. I have also done an owl theme (Look "Whooos" in Third Grade!). This year, I am doing a happy new year theme. In January, I bought New Year's decorations and am using those. I also am doing a jukebox/record theme for my door, and that could be done as a bulletin board, as well.

Sports would be an easy theme.It lends itself to so many things. You could go at it from a team prospective. How about ALL-STAR CONDUCT, Ms.?'s ALL-STAR TEAM(for your bulletin board- have them write descriptions of themselves on pre-cut t-shirt shapes then cut out pictures you have previously taken of them and mount the face/head in the appropriate place on the t-shirt , BATTER-UP (for your job chart--job descriptions on bats with student names on balls)If your students sit in groups perhaps you could give each a team name. Just a few ideas. Hope it helps.

I use the Wizard of Oz theme in my second grade room. I got the idea last year from this website. On the front door to my room i made a yellow brick road from gold gingham material. I wrote all my children's name around it and said "FOLLOW THE YELLOW BRICK ROAD TO SECOND GRADE". On my other door I wrote "THERE'S NO PLACE LIKE SECOND GRADE" and I printed out a graphic of a pr of red ruby slippers clicking their heels. On my Reading BB I put drew a picture of the scarecrow pointing to his head saying "READING, WHAT A BRAINY IDEA!" Hope this helps!

THEME SETTER: Make a large paper lighthouse for your wall, or even one of plywood if you or someone you know is handy with tools. Put the words "Lighting the way for success in ___ grade." In the light shining out from the top.

JOB CHART: Put job names on small lighthouses on a blue paper background, put student names on ships and "sail" them to different jobs each week or month. "Sailing to Success Helping Out"

READING CORNER: A small wooden rowboat would be great. Or use a blue rug (like the sea) and make paper wood posts with rope tying them together along the wall for a nautical feel. Call it the "Reading Dock" Of course, pictures/posters or small statues of a lighthouse would be great here.

STUDENT OF THE WEEK: Call them the "Lighthouse Learner!" Say they they are guiding their ship in the right direction!

My class room theme is frogs and the pond habitat, So Hopper fit right in! My first grade team teachers each have a different theme... One does ladybugs and flowers, another does farm amd farm animals, and the last does Franklin and turtles. We have alot of fun. The children enjoy the colorful atmosphere and at the beginning of the year before the children know and can remember our names, they will be overheard on the playground referring to us as "the frog lady" or the "turtle teacher". Kind of cute!

Reading board: Make stacks of pigs. Title it "Pile O' Pigs!" For each ten books, they earn a pig. Stand them on the other pigs back. Then they could see who has the highest pig tower.

Good Work: "Ms. /Mr. ___ is HOGGING all the good work!"

Behavior Managment: Make a big pond where all the "piglets" are. If they get a warning, they move their pig to the edge of the pond. If they get in trouble again, they move their pig out of the pond. The final time, they send their pig to the barn.

Helper Board: Make little corn on the cobs for the job names and give each student a little pig with...

I have bees, bugs and butterflies as a part of my garden themed room. I have a caption on my student work board, "This work is something to buzz about" with bee cutouts posting the work. I have "growing good behavior" over my behavior charts. You could also use "this work makes my heart flutter" with butterflies on the student work board.

I like the ideas! I've been looking for an idea to do with hershey kisses without sounding too "lovey". I do a theme around a candy or cereal each year and the kids love it. Also, it helps identify the classes throughout the years too and the kids don't forget. I just had a student from my first class converse with me about being part of the "Lifesavers" class. I decorated the board like the wrapper of the lifesaver, cut out lifesavers with a circle cutter and put their names on them, then on the first day of school we took pictures and put those in the center of the lifesavers. The kisses idea would be so cute to put their pics on the kisses and their names on the paper tags.You could do some chocolate themes, read chocolate literature (Chocolate Fever, Chocolate Covered Ants, Charlie and the Chocolate...

Does anyone have any pictures of their classroom with the construction theme. This is what I have planned for next year. I have caution and danger tape that police and construction workers use. Also, an orange fence that the construction crew uses.